Getting a book from idea to publication is quite a
process. I remember the day that my
husband, Gary Shockley and my friend, Paul Nixon came to our apartment in
Nashville to pitch this book idea so that I would have something to do in the
fall of 2010! Having just moved there
from Orlando FL, and not yet having a job, they felt it was important for me to
have something meaningful to do. Here we
are nearly 2 ½ years later with the book arriving for sale any day now!
As Paul and I began to talk about our hopes for this book, we sensed a great connection around the emerging themes. We are both coaches for pastors and lay leadership teams in congregations around the country. I had left a position in Central Florida where I had partnered with United Methodist congregations to facilitate and coach a two-year transformational process that moved them to new vision and purpose so that they could have ministry impact within their communities. With my husband’s pastoral leadership, I had helped to plant two new United Methodist churches. Paul had been a pastor for growing congregations, served as a Judicatory Leader, and started new churches. As writing partners we found a passion around the strategies for helping churches succeed in mission and ministry.
We both agreed that there are plenty of resources to help
congregations know what to do to
succeed - start new small groups, invest in praise bands to start new styles of
worship, train and empower lay people to provide congregational care – there
are tons of programs for growth and success!
What we felt was missing was a resource that addressed the strategies of
how congregations can affect change
so that whatever they chose to do, the culture (attitudes and behaviors) of the
congregation would provide the proper platform for the new thing. Who we are, as individuals and communities of
faith, is probably more important in the long run than what we do. So, The
Surprise Factor: Gospel Strategies for Changing the Game at Your Church
provides 10 strategies that will impact your ministry, as lay people and clergy
in partnership. Perhaps the overriding
theme that we hope to communicate is that our relationship with God through
Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit is at the core of every healthy, fruitful
congregation!
Looking forward to joining you on the journey!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jeff! Hopefully you've received your copy of The Surprise Factor by now! Our hope is to post a blog a week. Let us know your responses to each chapter! Blessings!
DeleteKim, in my work recently I keep meeting church lead teams that would benefit from reading the Surprise Factor. A lot of these folks know the tactical ministry stuff they should be doing - in fact they see the church down the street doing a lot of it - but they lack the internal team synergy to move forward. This book isn't about tactics - but about the strategy of aligning a team in ministry.
ReplyDelete